Paris (AFP)
LREM deputy and entrepreneur Sylvain Maillard, pinned in the Pandora papers for having been linked to a structure in Seychelles, defended his "integrity" on Tuesday, claiming to have been "the victim of identity theft in 2010".
In its Wednesday edition, the daily Le Monde reveals that the elected representative of Paris was the 25% partner of a Seychellois shell company for the online sale of "Beyblade" tops imported from Asia, at the fashion in the playgrounds a few years ago.
The partner of Mr. Maillard, the only one to have been found at the time, was convicted of counterfeiting and commercial damage in 2014.
This partner himself assures Le Monde that he used Mr. Maillard's passport, of which he had a copy, to create the company, without asking for his consent.
"I was abused and the victim of identity theft in 2010," insists Mr. Maillard in a press release.
"To question my integrity in this way is hurtful and shocking," he adds.
Bercy has launched checks on the presence or not of French tax residents among the people pinned in the Pandora papers, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Tuesday.
The Pandora Papers revelations, which are based on some 11.9 million documents from 14 financial services companies, uncovered more than 29,000 offshore companies.
The opacity surrounding these companies located in countries or territories with very favorable taxation can be used to conceal financial assets and to evade the tax administration.
According to Le Monde, 600 French people appear in the investigation of the Pandora papers.
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